My LIW tribute...
Feeling sentimental so even though it didn't win me the necklace, here's my essay...
When I started planning my wedding in July 2003, I had very few resources or friends to help me. I had moved to Long Island after college and met my husband here, but knew little about the area, and had very few friends on Long Island to help me out. My Maid of Honor was my best friend from college who moved to Michigan soon after I got engaged, and my only bridesmaid was my sister in law who I did not have a close relationship with. I had never even been to a wedding, and here I was thrown into planning one! I felt lost, and overwhelmed by the amount of research I had to do before committing to booking a vendor. When I found LIW in March of 2004 (it’s my year anniversary!) all I had done so far was booked was my hall. I was on a strict budget, but did not want to compromise on quality.
The Brides Helping Brides board helped me book all of my other vendors. I booked my photographer, hair and makeup, officiant, florist, and honeymoon all based on recommendations from other women on the boards. I no longer felt like I was choosing a vendor blindly—my choice was based on the opinions and reviews of hundreds of other brides. I was so pleased with all of my vendors—not only did I have the wedding I always wanted, but was able to stick within the budget I had set! I even found the condominium that we bought the June before our wedding through two other women on the boards who live in the complex. It is wonderful knowing neighbors!
But LIW has done so much more for me than provide a service for choosing wedding vendors. I have met some of my closest friends on LIW. Soon after I joined, there was a thread on NWR asking where everyone worked. I posted where I worked, and another person after me posted she worked in the same place! It turned out peabody worked in the building next to me, doing a very similar job, and was getting married at my reception hall the month before me. We had both already booked Duet as our photographer and Flower Michele as our florist! It was so strange how much we had in common. We soon became close friends, and helped each other with the rest of our wedding planning. It was Tara who took a day off work and went with me gown shopping only two months before my wedding when I wasn’t happy with my original gown. She helped me pick “the gown,” and I was so happy with my second gown on my wedding day.
I started going to the Suffolk get togethers and met several other women who have since become close friends. Julie, Tara, Wendy, and I frequently met up for dinner since we all worked in the same area. When I joined the site, I thought the first wedding I would be attending would be my own, but I went to both Julie’s and Tara’s before mine, and was so happy to have them (along with their husbands!) at my wedding to share my day with me. Going to their weddings before my own was great—I knew how much time and effort they both put into planning their wedding, and was able to pick up some tips for my own wedding.
As a newlywed, I am so happy to have LIW as a resource. I think part of the reason why the friendships I have made through LIW are so strong is that we are all going through the same change in our life as we move on to another stage—we are leaving behind friends that are still single, and learning what it means to be married. The newlywed board is wonderful because it enables newlyweds to ask questions without being judged about what is normal in the first, most difficult year of marriage, as well as sharing the small joys of everyday married life. Recently someone made a post about the newlywed board being the only board where brides will admit that their husbands aren’t perfect! It’s a forum to vent, complain, praise, and share excitement with others that are going through the same thing at the same time, and aren’t afraid to tell you that the first year of marriage is hard. That is something that has been wonderful for me—living together for the first time was a huge adjustment, and hearing that I wasn’t alone in my feelings made me feel so much better.
I still go on Brides Helping Brides and try to use my experiences to help the brides-to-be. It’s amazing thinking that was me a year ago—my life has changed so much since then. And that is what it is all about—sharing experiences and advice with others, and making friendships along the way. My sister in law got engaged before my wedding, and I introduced her to LIW. I now “talk” to her more on LIW than I do in person, and find out more about her life (and my nephew that she is now pregnant with!) from her posts and FMs. It has brought us closer together since we now have a shared pastime.
Now I really can’t imagine my life without LIW. Tara remains one of my closest friends (my mom jokes that some people meet their groom online, but I met my friends online through LIW!), and we have fun getting together with our group of friends that met when we were planning our weddings together. We are now concentrating on trips to celebrate our first anniversary! LIW doesn’t end with the wedding, it’s only the beginning.
When I started planning my wedding in July 2003, I had very few resources or friends to help me. I had moved to Long Island after college and met my husband here, but knew little about the area, and had very few friends on Long Island to help me out. My Maid of Honor was my best friend from college who moved to Michigan soon after I got engaged, and my only bridesmaid was my sister in law who I did not have a close relationship with. I had never even been to a wedding, and here I was thrown into planning one! I felt lost, and overwhelmed by the amount of research I had to do before committing to booking a vendor. When I found LIW in March of 2004 (it’s my year anniversary!) all I had done so far was booked was my hall. I was on a strict budget, but did not want to compromise on quality.
The Brides Helping Brides board helped me book all of my other vendors. I booked my photographer, hair and makeup, officiant, florist, and honeymoon all based on recommendations from other women on the boards. I no longer felt like I was choosing a vendor blindly—my choice was based on the opinions and reviews of hundreds of other brides. I was so pleased with all of my vendors—not only did I have the wedding I always wanted, but was able to stick within the budget I had set! I even found the condominium that we bought the June before our wedding through two other women on the boards who live in the complex. It is wonderful knowing neighbors!
But LIW has done so much more for me than provide a service for choosing wedding vendors. I have met some of my closest friends on LIW. Soon after I joined, there was a thread on NWR asking where everyone worked. I posted where I worked, and another person after me posted she worked in the same place! It turned out peabody worked in the building next to me, doing a very similar job, and was getting married at my reception hall the month before me. We had both already booked Duet as our photographer and Flower Michele as our florist! It was so strange how much we had in common. We soon became close friends, and helped each other with the rest of our wedding planning. It was Tara who took a day off work and went with me gown shopping only two months before my wedding when I wasn’t happy with my original gown. She helped me pick “the gown,” and I was so happy with my second gown on my wedding day.
I started going to the Suffolk get togethers and met several other women who have since become close friends. Julie, Tara, Wendy, and I frequently met up for dinner since we all worked in the same area. When I joined the site, I thought the first wedding I would be attending would be my own, but I went to both Julie’s and Tara’s before mine, and was so happy to have them (along with their husbands!) at my wedding to share my day with me. Going to their weddings before my own was great—I knew how much time and effort they both put into planning their wedding, and was able to pick up some tips for my own wedding.
As a newlywed, I am so happy to have LIW as a resource. I think part of the reason why the friendships I have made through LIW are so strong is that we are all going through the same change in our life as we move on to another stage—we are leaving behind friends that are still single, and learning what it means to be married. The newlywed board is wonderful because it enables newlyweds to ask questions without being judged about what is normal in the first, most difficult year of marriage, as well as sharing the small joys of everyday married life. Recently someone made a post about the newlywed board being the only board where brides will admit that their husbands aren’t perfect! It’s a forum to vent, complain, praise, and share excitement with others that are going through the same thing at the same time, and aren’t afraid to tell you that the first year of marriage is hard. That is something that has been wonderful for me—living together for the first time was a huge adjustment, and hearing that I wasn’t alone in my feelings made me feel so much better.
I still go on Brides Helping Brides and try to use my experiences to help the brides-to-be. It’s amazing thinking that was me a year ago—my life has changed so much since then. And that is what it is all about—sharing experiences and advice with others, and making friendships along the way. My sister in law got engaged before my wedding, and I introduced her to LIW. I now “talk” to her more on LIW than I do in person, and find out more about her life (and my nephew that she is now pregnant with!) from her posts and FMs. It has brought us closer together since we now have a shared pastime.
Now I really can’t imagine my life without LIW. Tara remains one of my closest friends (my mom jokes that some people meet their groom online, but I met my friends online through LIW!), and we have fun getting together with our group of friends that met when we were planning our weddings together. We are now concentrating on trips to celebrate our first anniversary! LIW doesn’t end with the wedding, it’s only the beginning.
